Antisway bar



March 11, 1952 1 w LEIGHTON 2,589,009

ANTISWAY BAR Filed March 22, 1946 2 SHEETSSHEET 1 INVENTOR. JZ/fl? 1/ n ez lqz o/r BY Y a Wfw,

Patented Mar. 11, 1952 j:;u1v1TEo STATE-S" PATENT OFFICE f h i ANTISWAYBAR.

John W Leighton, Port Huron, Mich. Application March 22, 1946, Serial No. 656,310

- The invention relates generally to automobiles and particularly to sway or roll controlling devices and theirefiect on the ridingqualities of automobiles. 1 *1 In certain respects the animprovement over those embodied in my pending applications for patent", Serial No; 566,- 369, filed December 6,1944, now Patent No. 2,555,- 141, issued May 29, 1951, and" Serial No. 598,122,

filed J une 7, 1945, nowPatent No. 2,523,473,issued September26; 1950. V j A i As generally described inthe aforesaid applications forpatent, in connection with individual wheel suspensions as used at firstQexcellnt riding qualities were obtained under usual road conditions because the coil springs were designed to secure such "qualities; Later when anti-sway or anti-roll devices were added, usually in the form of transversetorsion bars mounted on the frame and connected to arms ofth'e suspensions, a varying springrate was added to the suspensions and the ride becamerougher. More particularly in connection with the torsion type anti-sway bar, when thecar is in motion on the road, the wheels operate independently of each other almost continuously except where a'road is absolutely smooth mThere are few, if any, such roads and hence for all practical purposes the wheels are constantly moving in opposite vertical directions. As a result, the torsion bar is constantly acting as a spring which isadditional to the coil springs. If the bar is strong enough or has spring resistance enough to prevent lateral roll or sway, then since this strong spring resistance is added to the car springs when the caris in motion on the road, the ride becomes too harsh. 'If, on the other hand, the car springs are made soft enough to obtain a good ride with such a strong torsion bar, then in those instances when the wheels do move vertically togetherin the same direction the coil springs alone support; the car and the spring support is too soft. -Ipwus i ii g' an anti-sway bar according tothe inventions embodied in my copending applications for patent and in this application for patent, a similar condition is present as in the case-of torsion bars excepting that the former add less spring resistance to the car springing at all times when the wheels move vertically in opposite directions or vertically ma relative sense. Moreover, this added spring resistance characterizing the inventions mentioned is, substantially present when both wheels move vertically in the same direction. .Therefore 1 under the usual road conditions; the ride is softer. and

invention constitutes 10 Claims. (01. 267 -11) even where both wheels move together the bar adds some spring resistance to the coil springs so that the latter do not operate alone. On the other hand, ifrolling or swaying of the .frame tends to occur, the resistance of bars embodying the inventions becomes magnified greatly due to reverse bending in opposite directions; It follows? that the use of bars involving the inventions enables obtaining asofter and less harsh ride while still providing strong resistance to rollingof the frame. y According to one form of the invention embodied in the present application for patent, the anti-sway bar isthinned towards its center or in other words its resistance to bending vertically increases from the center laterally towards the points where the ends of the bar are secured to the arms of thesuspensions. This type of bar during any tendency of theirame to sway or roll laterally strongly and increasingly resists the rolling action because the two halves of the bar bend in opposite directions l he bar thus can be made to have greater resistance to bending towards the end portions connected to the arms so as to increase the resistance to roll or sway of the frame. At the same time the thinner sections of the bar will permit bending thereof such as must occur when the wheels move relative to the frame either independently or together, with a minimum increase in the total springrate of the suspension. In other words, the invention obtains an increase in the sway resistance by strengthening the bar in the regions adjacent the connection with the suspension arms such as by increasing the bar sections in these regions while still permitting overall bending of the bar with vertical wheel movements with a lessened increase in the total spring rate. Also, the progressive thinning of the bar towards its center acts to distribute the stresses more uniformly along the bar. One of. the objects of the inventionis to provide'an improved type of bar which can be manufactured inexpensively and which performs its function efiiciently for thepurpose of preventing rolling and dipping of the frame while at the same'time allowing a smooth ride to be obtained. Another object of the invention is to provide an anti-sway bar which will increase the resistance to roll or sway while minimizing the increase in the total spring rate of the suspen sion during usual operating conditions. i

Another object of theinvention is to provide an. improved, anti-sway bar which has progressivel'y increasing resistance to bending from its parent from the following specification, from the drawings relating thereto, and from the claims hereinafter set. forth.

For a better understanding of the invention reference may be had to the drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a front elevational view of a vehicle frame embodying opposing wheel suspensions connected by an anti-sway bar constructed according to one form of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan View showing the construction of the end portion of the bar shown in Figure 1.

Fig. 3 is a front view on a larger scale of the half section of bar shown in Figure 2.

Fig: 4 is a cross-sectional view on a larger scale 7 taken sectionally along the line fi''4 of Figure 2.

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Figure '2 showing a bar constructed according to another form ofthe invention.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken substan tially along the line 6'6 of Figure 5.

Fig. 2 is a front eleva'tional view of the construction shown by Figure-5 and;

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken substan'- tially along the line 88 of Figure '7.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of a bar constructed according to another form of the invention and; r

Fig. 10 is a front view of 'thebar shown by Referring to Figure l, the frame of the vehicle is indicated at H] and such frame may be of an ordinary type having side members extending longitudinally of the vehicle and having rear'and front cross members. The portion of the frame shown in Fig. 1 may be considered generally as the frontcrossmemberof the frame.

I Each oftheindividual-wheel suspensions comprises an upper pivotal arm not shown, a verti cally disposed wheel supporting member l l hinged to the outer end of the upper arm and a iower arm 12, This lower arm is hinged to the frame as indicated at'l 3and is also hinged to the lower end "of the memb r. "11 as indicated at 14. A. wheel supporting axle [5' is mounted "on the member 'H in a conventional manner.

'Each of the lower arms l2 ordinarily may; be in the'iorm of a wish bone having "a front leg which is the "one shown and both legs of the wish bone support'a coil spring seat or "pan IT. The coil spring at each side of the frame is'i'ndicated at 18 and it abuts a portion or the frame at its upper end and rests on the peril! atits lower end. The hinge or :pivot 3 comprises a control bar I9 fastened to the frame and the two legs of the wish bone respectively pivotlyengage opposite ends of. this bar. Each leg 12 is a stamping which is channel sha'pefin cross-section and the vertical web of. the channel is indicated at 20 while the upper and lower legs of the channel are indicated at 2| and 22. respectively. It is evident from the foregoing that when either wheel moves vertically with respect to the frame its arm l2 swings or pivots about the pivot 13 and the 4 spring [8 compresses or elongates, depending upon the movement involved.

The anti-sway bar shown in Figure 1 is indicated at 25 and the two ends of this bar are disposed in the two channels at the opposite sides of the frame "and are fastened to the webs 20 by bolts 26 and 2'1. The bar at each side of its center point, indicated at 29, is of the same shape and dimensions and it should be noted initially that it is thinnest at the center and progressive- 1y increases in thickness towards the bolts 26. This progressive increase in thickness'is in a vertical direction and as the bar varies in thickness from its center its horizontal width increases. In other words, the bar is widest in a horizontal direction and thinnest in a vertical direction at the center 29 and progressively away from the center its horizontal width decreases while its vertical thickness increases. This variation continues; as seen in Figure 2, to a point 30 and beyond this point the vertical thickness increases and the shape of the bar gradually approaches a round condition at the point 3 l.

Also as seen in Figure 2, the bar extends in a substantially straight condition from the center to a point indicated at 33 and then it is curved as indicated at 34 to the point 30 and from this point it first is reversely curved as indicated at 36 and. then it extends in a substantially straight condition as indicated at 31. The latter portion 3'! is disposed in the channel and the twobolts 26 and 2l' extend therethrough. Attention is "directed to the fact that thebar is upsetsubstan tially in the region where the bolt 2 6, is applied and as indicated at All so has to increase the strength of the bar at this point and particularly to provide greater resistance to bending. stresses. Provision of the upset portion 40 particularly is desirable where the bar is made from small. diam; eter stock. outwardly from the upset portion 49 the portion 3'! is generally straight excepting that it is curved with the arm as indicated at 41 to clear the pan [1. e v

The bar described is made from round bar stock and the progressively thinned portions-may be formedby suitable rolling operations. JZ -he upset portions 46 maybe formed by suitable metal upsetting operations and theendportions 31 of the bar may be formed. by suitablemetal pressing operations. I

Theqspring or, resilient characteristics of the barand its length and size must besuch that the intermediate portion of the bar betweenthe points of attachment to the arms [2 canbendlas requ-iredin the operation of the automobile,v including the double bending which resists frame roll or sway, without causing overstressing of the bar-at any point or oausing the elastic-limit of any bending partof thebar tobe reached. Whilethegeneral manner in which the bar operates is brought out in the copending-applicatiens for patent mentioned, it may be: observed in connection with. the improved bar that it will bend easier at the center where; greatest bending should occur and that its bending resistance will progressively increase towards the; bolts as less bendingshould occur. Thus bending of the bar will be more uniform over the length'of the bar between the bolts. During operation of I the vehicle under usual road. conditions where the wheels are moving vertically with respect to 'each other; the thinned central regions ofzthe-bar per mit easier overall bending of the bar and-consequently the increase in spring. resistance added to the. coil springs is minimized.

qualitiesdesired.

(Din-the thef anqywhen the vehicle ten s to roll or sway 'aswhen making a turn; bar must bend in a double manner or in other words, one

bar-at onesideof the' ce'nter bends in'one direcrollsb'y double bendingtor bends over its length between the bolts 26, the bending stresses are distributed -more uniformly and the bar accordingly will be more durable without sacrificing any In he'c'onstruction shown byFiguresb-and '7,

the: bar indicated at 50 is substantially like that shown inth'e previous figures butin thisfcase' the bar ismadefrom larger bar stock and instead of fhavingthe upset-portion lllfas "seen in Figure ,;"the endsof the bar adjacentthe boltsilt are sufficiently" large to provide the desired resistanc'es'f to bending. -In connection with-Figure '7,

it will'be noted thatthe'ends of the bar disposed in the channel areflattened to: provide a section 5| which substantially fits between the legs 2 and2 2 of the channel. )In, addition to the bolt "fastening "means, the ends o fthe bar are thus rigidly anchored through a snug fit between a substantial length of the bar and each channel and in effect, the end of the bar becomes a part of the channel structure.

Figs. 9 and 10 show a bar 55 made according to another form of the invention wherein the central portion of the bar is thinned in a vertical direction as indicated at 55 to provide less resistance to bending and such central portion is coiled to provide a, spring convolution 51. At each side of the portion 55, the bar may be constructed to correspond to Fig. 3 or Fig. 7 or it might be desirable to use round bar stock between the portion 56 and the bolts and if needed to upset or strengthen the bar adjacent the bolts.

Although more than one form of the invention has been illustrated and described in detail, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An antisway device adapted to be connected to the arms of opposed wheel suspensions on opposite sides of a vehicle frame, comprising a bar having terminal coupling portions adapted to be respectively connected to such arms and. a free intermediate portion between said coupling portions and which is resiliently bendable, said intermediate portion being substantially fiat and relatively thin in one plane and the coupling portions being substantially flat and relatively thin in planes substantially perpendicular to the first plane.

2. An antisway device adapted to be connected to the arms of opposed wheel suspensions on a vehicle frame comprising a bar having rigid end coupling portions adapted to be respectively connected to such arms and a substantially straight intermediate portion located in a position between and substantially equidistant from said end coupling portions and which is resiliently bendable, said intermediate portion approximately from its own end regions to its center being progressively wider in one plane and progressively thinner in a plane normal to the first plane.

3. An antisway device adapted to be connected V g V I "vidual' w'heelsuspension at each sideof the frame 6 to the arms of opposed wheel suspensions one vehicle frame comprising a bar having rigid end coupling portions adapted'to be respectively connected to such arms and a substantiallyfstraight intermediate portion locatedin' afposition between and'subst'antially equidistant from said end portions and which is resiliently bendable, the intermediate and end portions of the bar being relatively :wideco'mpared'to the thickness but the 'wider area of the end portions-beingin planes normal to the 'planeof the wider areas of the intermediate'por tionm 4. In combination; 'a vehicle frame, an indi- 'vi dual w en suspension at each sid'of the frame and each 'incliidin'g*a'n arm connected to the 'frameandbxteriding laterally therefrom for up and down swinging movement about an axis extending generally longitudinally of the frame,

"ana ajresiuent barf extending laterally of the name and having its endportions rigidl'yfcon- 'nected to the arms, said bar in the region of its longitudinal "center being; less resistant to bending forces th'anregion's adjacentto; the central q l. j 5.-In combination, a vehicle frame, an indiand. each including an ramm s-remains 'lrameand extending laterally therefrom for" up and down swinging movement about an axis extending generally longitudinally of the frame, and a resilient bar extending laterally of the frame and having its end portions rigidly connected to the arms, said bar being thinnest in a vertical direction in the region of its longitudinal center.

6. In combination, a vehicle frame, an individual wheel suspension at each side of the frame and each including an arm connected to the frame and extending laterally therefrom for up and down swinging movement about an axis extending longitudinally of the frame, and a resilient bar extending laterally of the frame and having its end portions rigidly connected to the arms, said bar from its longitudinal central region and towards each end connected to the frame being progressively increased in resistance to bending in a. vertical direction.

' 7. In combination, a vehicle frame, an individual wheel suspension at each side of the frame and each including an arm connected to the frame and extending laterally therefrom for up and down swinging movement about an axis extending longitudinally of the frame, and a resilient bar extending laterally of the frame and having its end portions rigidly connected to the arms, said bar from its longitudinal central region towards each end connected to the frame being progressively increased in thickness in a vertical direction.

8. An antisway device adapted to be connected to the arms of opposed wheel suspensions on a vehicle frame comprising a bar having terminal coupling portions adapted to be respectively connected to such arms and an intermediate portion between said end portions and which is resiliently bendable, said intermediate portion being modified substantially in its central region in its resistance to bending in one transverse direction to provide a resistance to bending in that plane which is less than the bending resistance of the end regions of the intermediate portion in the same direction, said coupling portions including holding portions extending in planes perpendicular to such plane of bending, said entire bar being bowed in said first-mentioned plane of bending so that both of said coupling portions li on one sideof said coupling portions.

bendable, said intermediate portion being modified in its resistance to bending in onetransverse directionsubstantially in its central region to provide a resistance to bending in that plane whic-his less than the bending resistance of the end regions wofthe!intermediate portion in the same direcminal coupling portions adapted to be respectively connected to such arms and an intermediate portion between said end portions and which is resiliently bendable, said intermediate portion being modified in its resistance to bending in one transverse direction substantially in its central regionto provide a resistance to bending in that'plane which is less than the bending re- 8 sistance of the end regions of the intermediate portion in the same direction, the intermediate portion of the bar being bodily offset in said same plane to one side only of said terminal coupling portions and also being resiliently 'distortable 'to accommodate movement of said coupling portions toward and fromcne another. 7

JOHN W. LEIGHTON.

REFERENCES CITED V The following references, are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED 'STATES PATENTS Number Name 7 Date 331,215 Roth .i .i Nov, 24,1885 475,304 Faske i. May'24, 1892 509,069 Burch a- Nov. 21, v1-893 1,130,157 Elli-ng 1 Mar. 2, 1915 1,377,980 Cowe'y a no May 10,1921 1,742,387 Gatter Jan, 7,,1930 1,860,831 Bell 1.1 May 3 1, 1932 2,254,261 Best, 'a- Sept. 2, 1941 2,497,459 Leighton Feb. "14, 1.950

. FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 113,345 Great Britain his. Feb, 21,1918 

